


Where You'll Find Me

by QueenSquared



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: "wanting to be dead" ?, Hopeful Ending, M/M, Slash, Small Amounts of Fluff, Strong and emotional interactions amirite, Unhappy Ending, alien keith, klance, mostly angst, not exactly suicidal thoughts but proceed with caution, some violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-12
Updated: 2017-01-28
Packaged: 2018-08-30 14:14:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 18,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8536324
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenSquared/pseuds/QueenSquared
Summary: Keith has the perfect life, complete with a family and a  loving boyfriend. Even with his shady past constantly looming over him, things seem to be looking up.When Shiro makes a decision that puts some of the Paladins in danger, Keith's past starts to catch up to him, and he may not be the only one suffering the consequences.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is something new I'm trying! I've basically made an out line to the whole story so I can picture myself getting to point A to point B. I'm estimating this story will have around 10 chapters, but I'll leave that at a question mark just in case.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! :)

"Again," Allura prompted.

Keith sat in the grass, petals splayed out in one hand with the other raised in a fist. This was the fifth time they had tried it. While the past results had been a success, Keith couldn't help the slight waver of his hands. And Allura took notice.

She had done rather well just sitting on the sidelines and letting Keith figure it out by himself, until now.

But Keith didn't mind. In fact, he lowered his hands in defeat and looked back to Allura, pleading with his eyes. Even though he registered her disappointment, she was quick to comply, lowering herself onto the grass behind him.

She inched closer to him, stretching her arms out over his, guiding his limbs like a puppet. He let his arms sway side to side, her calming presence bringing more stability to his situation.

But it still wasn't enough.

Keith huffed in frustration as nothing happened with the petals before him. If there was anything positive worth noting though, he could tell his senses were getting better. Allura's determination tingled under his skin, urging him to do better.

_"You can do this, Keith. I have upmost faith in you."_

Keith sighed, cocking his head. Still nothing.

Now he could feel her resentment.  _"If it helps, I suppose you can think of him."_

And just like that, Keith was able to relax and everything fell in place. His senses sharpened, allowing fresh air to flow around him and he breathed deeply, absorbing the scent of the flowers. Allowing himself to peek a little, he cracked open his eyes, marveling at the sight of the petals weaving themselves together, pressing into strips of paper. One by one they connected until Keith could make out music notes on them. Until they became average sized slates, they started the process again.

Keith allowed himself a smile, as they settled into his lap and couldn't help but laugh in triumph.

"I did it!" He rejoiced, turning towards Allura. The princess nodded, admittedly proud.

"Well done, Keith. You are making great progress."

The red paladin continued to beam, blushing a shade of periwinkle. He couldn't help but feel proud of himself.

"Soon enough, I'll be as good as you."

Allura chuckled, motioning to his new complexion. "Spoken like a true Altean."

They had figured this out a while ago. It was supposed to be a regular mission: sneak into a Galra ship and make away with the Quintessence. While it wasn't a complete failure, it wasn't an entirely successful mission either. While loading the last bit into the red lion, they had taken heavy fire, some of which entered the lion. Red tried to move in defense but as a consequence, all of the quintessence viles proceeded to tumble out of the loading dock, hurtling toward the ground. Keith had taken a hit from all of them.

Normally, it wouldn't have affected a human at all, washing away like water. But as the other Paladins moved to help him, they noticed something different about Keith. Shattered glass lay scattered around him, but due to the extreme doses of quintessence, Keith remain unscathed. Instead, he emitted an exuberant amount of the substance, glowing a soft periwinkle. It didn't take long for anyone to understand what had happened. Keith was at a loss for words, as was Allura, so she decided to test his mind.

_"I believe... I wasn't able to detect this due to your human cloaking mechanism."_

Keith nodded at her, shocked that the telepathy was actually working. But rather providing him comfort, it lead him into the dark even more.

" _I thought I was...something else."_

From that moment on, Keith didn't have any secrets. Allura had figured out everything through their Altean ability. He believed he was done for, ready for the banishment he hoped would never come.

And it never did.

Because Allura felt so guilty for prying into his mind that she never spoke a word of it to anyone. The only thing they would know was that Keith was part Altean.

This was not something to dread over. Allura saw this as an opportunity to reconnect with her kin. She no longer felt alone in the universe. So, they spent a few ticks a day working on perfecting his Altean abilities. Even though he had gotten it right this time, Allura wasn't pleased with the method.

"You're going to have to stop relying on him to bring you strength. You know that, Keith."

It didn't take a genius to know that Allura was referring to Lance. The pilots had been together for a while now, two years out of the three they had known Voltron. And Keith cherished it. Sure, they didn't always get along like a house on fire, but it was always exciting, something in great contrast from his previous, drab, shack-lived life. He knew Lance felt the same way.

He also knew Allura was right.

Keith sighed. "I know, Princess. I've just been alone for so long. Lance helps me find some kind of solace."

He saw a look of compassion flash over her features momentarily. Allura put her hand on Keith's shoulder and it was gone in an instant.

"Find solace in Voltron."

After they were done with that day's exercises, Keith was allowed to go back to the castle to join his fellow Paladins. While he had been in the field with Allura, the others had been on the training deck with Coran. Keith liked to gloat, feeling like he got the upper hand in activities to do, but he had to admit that he missed them. They still trained together, as they had to keep their Voltron bond strong, but the sudden change in schedules made Keith feel like even more of an alien then he already was.

These breaks from each other only made the reunions sweeter. Keith heard them all laughing and joking in the dining hall and when he entered the room, Shiro smiled in his direction, beckoning him over.

"Keith. Glad you could join us." As soon as Shiro said his name, the other four whipped their heads in Keith's direction.

"Keith! Come sit over here!"

"No, come over here! It's warmer anyway."

"Oh c'mon you always sit by Lance."

Keith snorted and made his way over to Lance, plopping down in the seat beside him. He shot Hunk an apologetic look before he kissed Lance on the cheek.

"Maybe 'cause he's my boyfriend." 

Now, three years was not a lot of time. Keith could attest to that. But to him, these three years had been a beautiful eternity, like he was being reborn into a new life. Forget the past, he never thought he would actually have a future.

But looking at Shiro, Hunk, Pidge, and Lance laughing around the table gave him reason to believe he did indeed have one. And that was one awesome feeling.

When they were done with dinner, Lance took Keith to their secret hiding place. Okay, so it wasn't actually a secret; everyone knew they were there, but it was their own little haven where they could relax while staring out at whatever landscape the planet they were on provided for. In this case, it was Arus.

And it was absolutely beautiful on Arus.

Keith sat on the windowsill overlooking Arus while Lance sat down on the floor with his guitar. While he tuned it, he looked at Keith, raising one eyebrow.

"You brought what I asked you for?" He said in a sultry tone.

Keith rolled his eyes but presented the papers with pride. Lance took them and examined them.

"Yes. Yes. So I'm assuming demon summoning practice went pretty well today?"

Keith tried to restrain himself from punching his shoulder, but he did it anyway, earning a snicker from Lance.

"Not demon summoning. I'm just getting in touch with my Altean side."

Lance nodded, leaning over his guitar to start tuning it. "Sounds fun. Why can't I do that? Instead, I gotta train all day."

Keith shrugged. "Because you're not Altean, Lance."

Lance seemed to weigh his options before answering. His voice dropped an octave again.

"Oh yeah? I think I could get a little Altean in me."

Even though Keith was blushing, he couldn't help but look at Lance like he was an idiot.

"Just play the damn song" he said, shaking his head in disdain. The other boy sighed, "as you wish, my dear" and began playing.

Keith loved Lance's singing voice. It was one of the many reasons he had fallen for him. But as he sat there, watching Lance's head tilt from side to side, eyes closed and mouth curled into a smile, he couldn't help but remember the other reason.

He was pretty damn beautiful.

" _Someday I'll wish upon a star_

_and wake up where the clouds are far_

_behind me._

_Where trouble melts like lemon drops_

_Way above the chimney tops_

_That's where you'll find me._

Usually, they'd hang out for a while, but as time etched on, Keith became more and more concerned with his training. And it wouldn't have bothered him so much if Allura's words hadn't kept echoing in his mind.

" _You're going to have to stop relying on him to bring you strength. You know that, Keith."_

Keith groaned, standing up and Lance stopped playing. "What is it?"

Keith pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm sorry. I just... I can't do this right now. I have to go practice some more. I'm really close to a breakthrough."

Disappointing Lance was like kicking a puppy, but Keith knew he would get over it. Lance immediately started sulking.

"We barely get any time together by ourselves anymore," he mumbled, fingering the guitar strings. "When am I gonna be able to just hang out with you again?"

There he was, trying to guilt trip him again. And it was working. Keith crouched by the guitar so he could be at eye level.

"Hey. Soon, okay? How about after this, I ask Allura to take us to Patarch, okay? That planet with the beaches and he weird tentacle looking whatever's? Won't that be cool?"

Before Lance could answer, Allura's urgent voice boomed over the coms, rattling them from their daze.

"PALADINS! I need you!"


	2. Chapter 2

Lance and Keith both bolted from their present location, taught to spring into action without asking questions. When they made their way to the place where the lion hangars met, they grabbed their beyards and uniforms, displayed in their proper cases. The others were already missing, so both boys pulled their suits on as fast as possible so they could join the other three. 

When they got to the control room, everyone else was in uniform, but they were gathered at the windows. Lance squeezed himself beside Hunk so he could get a better view.

"What's happening?" He asked eagerly. Hunk pressed his face up against the glass.

"There's a load of quintessence on that planet. Allura wants us to go get it. She's officially lost her mind."

Allura looked at Hunk in offense, but Keith noticed the uneasiness resonating within Shiro and Pidge. Keith joined them and gazed upon what would be their next mission.

Had it not been for the atmosphere, the planet would have appeared rather tranquil. The rock was completely engulfed in water where millions of residents dwelled, swimming and walking about. Like a cell, particles floated around in it, appearing to be the creatures homes. They were suspended in the liquid, traveling the water, just going about life. It looked peaceful enough.

The problem was the area filling the atmosphere. Literally every square inch was occupied by pipeline or wire, weaving in and out of each other, offering only a little bit of space to get through. To make matters worse, a bolt of electricity passed through the system like a wave, igniting the entire area and leaving it scalding like a stovetop. Because of this, the planet gave off a bright blue glow that would usually be calming to the eyes.

But not in this case.

All five spun toward the Alteans, confounded.

"Coran. What the hell," Pidge expressed softly. The man scratched his beard innocently.

"I know it doesn't look like the most simple quest, but it's nothing different from any of your other missions."

Hunk was incredulous. "Are you kidding me? There's lightning shooting down at every angle. How do you expect us to get through there?!"

Before the Paladins could argue any longer, Allura held up a hand, silencing them all. And then she went to stand by Keith.

"I don't expect you all to go down there. That's why I'm only sending one."

Keith watched as the Paladins faces changed from confused to horrified. Except for Lance.

"What do you mean one? Like Voltron?" 

Allura shook her head. "You all are ready in uniform, and I thank you for that. But this mission is for Keith."

Keith blinked. " I'm sorry, princess. What now?"

Allura ignored the biting stares from everyone and pulled up the lions stats. She sifted through them until she found what she was looking for.

"Each of your lions has a special ability, Keith's being agility. I believe he has the best possible chance navigating through that atmosphere. Voltron is far too large and slow to maneuver."

Shiro clenched his fists. "Chance? We can't risk his life using chances!"

Allura nodded. "I understand, Shiro. But we have no choice. At the core of Cardot there is a massive mine of quintessence. If the Galra were to discover it, they would harvest it and then proceed to destroy the planet. We have to take it safely before they get here. If they make the conclusion that the planet is barren, then they may spare the civilians lives."

Shiro glared at Allura. "There you go again. They _may_  spare them? What if they don't?"

Shiro knew that arguing with the princess was pointless, but this was Keith they were talking about. He'd rather take his chances with Voltron.

But she definitely knew more about this than he did. And he hadn't lost a planet like she had.

Allura was determined. "We must try. I wouldn't send Keith on this mission if I did not believe he was capable." She said, facing the red paladin.

"It's up to you, Keith. I suppose I won't send you on this mission if you don't want to go."

Keith didn't. The lightning freaked him out to hell. But the way Allura was looking at him...she didn't really want him to give up this mission. He knew that if he did, he'd never hear the end of it. So Keith sucked it up. He nodded in affirmation.

"I'll do it. I want to."

He knew that Shiro was trying to come up with a million ways to get him to stay, but Keith didn't care. They didn't have time to wait. So, he gave him the most reassuring smile he could muster.

"It's okay, Shiro. You won't even notice I'm gone."

Shiro looked ready to further argue the point, but the other Paladins were already giving him well wishes. He stayed quiet and shrugged.

"Fine. Bring your beyard. We'll be watching."

Allura, Coran and the other Paladins watched with bated breath as Keith boarded his lion and set the preferred controls. As his lion roared to life, Keith heard banging on the hangar door and lept up from his seat.

 _Probably Pidge with another flight suggestion,_ Keith thought before opening the door. Instead, within seconds Lance had thrown himself at him in a hug, burying his face into Keith's neck. It took him a moment to return the gesture.

"Be careful. What will I do if I lose you?"

Keith smiled, touched by Lance's concern. He took his face in his hands and kissed him softly.  It was sweet how Lance didn't want to pull away and Keith caressed his hand with his thumb.

In a soft voice, he sang," where trouble melts like lemon drops, way above the chimney tops is where you'll find me..."

Lance finally smiled again and Keith nearly melted to the floor. He'd cherish that smile forever.

Keih watched him leave and join the others before he closed the door and sat in the pilot's seat. Steadying his shaky hands, he grabbed the handles, activating his bond with his lion.

"Let's do this, Red."

Since he was going by himself, he had his communicator on so he could interact with Allura and Shiro. They said it would be like they were right there beside him, and in a way Keith could believe it. He could hear Hunk and Pidge's badgering from Allura's communicator, and it made him feel good that they were all together.

"Okay, Keith. Just get nice and close to the atmosphere and tell me what you see," came Coran's voice. Keith did as he was told.

The red lion hovered about a mile before the outer core of the planet. He took it in steadily, but swallowed nervously, hands freezing at the controls.

"I-i see some pipes. And some very bright, uh, lightning, I think?"

Coran nodded. "It's supposed to look like that. Notice anything about the lightning?"

Keith furrowed his brow, not having a single idea about what Coran was talking about. But he examined the bolts closely running across the piped infrastructure. He supposed it was kind of weird that some were moving up and down and others were moving left to right.

Oh.

"There's a pattern. I...I think I see it."

If Keith could time it just right, he would be able to slide through an opening as long as he kept moving. Heading slightly to the left while the vertical bolts moved toward the right would be his best bet for safe passage.

Keith gripped the handles. "I know what to do."

Allura's praise resonated within him. They believed in him.

"Go ahead, Keith. Once you reach the water, you'll be safe. You'll even be able to trek on foot if you want."

Keith made up his mind. He was doing this. Once the wave started for the right, he mashed the accelerator, impelling him forward, straight into the atmosphere.

He wasted no time moving forward, and once he boosted through the first layer, a burst of adrenaline shot through his veins. Keith shuddered at his newfound excitement as he weaved Red through the workings of the pipes. Up, down, to the left, up, and down again, all while heading west.  The lightning crackled overhead, but due to the echo, Keith knew he was far away.

So he decided to take his chances and go toward the right.

On this side, the land was more populated, so Keith informed there would be more quintessence that way. He could even ensure the citizens that he wasn't a threat to their society.

"Keith, be careful" Allura warned. Red hovered in the air and Keith squinted at the ground.

"Hey, Allura. It's okay. I'm almost there."

It was hard to pinpoint what had exactly happened. Maybe the lightning patterns switched up. Maybe Red's foot got caught on a wire. That would be a reasonable explanation for the way her body jolted, throwing Keith against the control panel. Which wouldn't have been a big deal. Except seconds were precious time in the face of lightning.

Keith grunted, trying to get his bearing again. He jerked Red to the right.

"Allura. I think there's somethi--"

Keith shrieked in pain as the microphone exploded, a chunk of metal hitting his face. Flames licked the dashboard, spreading like wildfire, and a siren blared that meant big trouble.

He didn't have to be told twice.

He only got a few steps before the second bout of lightning hit, shattering one of Red's eyes. Keith fell backwards, landing on his shoulder.

"Red! Get us out of here!" He screamed.

Suddenly, there was a _Crack!_ and it punched him in the side of his head. It burned for a half a tic before his body went completely numb and jolted him up into the air, flinging him onto the floor. The air around him felt like it was on fire.

Allura's frantic expression flashed in his memory before his world faded to white.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're in need of a good laugh, it's always a good idea to go back and watch the old Voltron. Just saying.

 Lance's family was never rich but he always felt like they were better off than most people. Sometimes on late nights, he would lay in bed with a picture book on his lap with the ceiling light low and his window cracked, letting in the cool beach air. He'd wait impatiently for his mom, rambling to his sisters who slept in the bunk bed across the room and his cousins rolling around on the floor below him.

 Sometimes they tried to catch little snippets of the conversation in the other room and even though Lance didn't know the meaning behind the words "mortgage" "eviction" and "lawyer," he could tell something bad was going down. After a few tense words, Lance would scramble back under the covers, pretending like he hadnt been eavesdropping. And when his mom would walk in looking tired as ever she would just give them a weak smile to appease them.

"It's okay, mijo. Nothing can tear us apart."

 Now that he was older, Lance knew that this wasn't true. First the Garrison and even though it was cool, Voltron took him away from Earth. After losing practically  everything, Lance prepared himself to move on and what better way to do that then fall in love with your copilot.

 For the first time since admitting his love for Keith he wished he was back at the Garrison.

 He didn't know how to react, standing frigid for a moment. Shiro, however, reacted immediately.

"Keith?! Can you hear me?" He panicked, tapping on his helmet. He threw himself up at the glass. "Keith!"

Lance could only hear static coming from his helmet. Shiro swallowed and looked at Allura.

"Allura," Shiro breathed. "Can you...is he...?"

 The princesse's eyes were wide as she tried to focus on her connection with the red pilot. Her brow was furrowed in concentration but her hands were shaking. She grimaced as she made eye contact with her paladins.

"I...I can't tell. It's not enough."

Lance felt a sob lodge in his throat. Shiro looked one step from wreaking havoc onto everything.

Pidge started heading for her hangar. "I'm going out there. I've made enough modifications to the green lion that I'll be able t-"

Shiro pulled her back by the collar.

" _Not_ in a million years. You're staying right here. There's another way we can do this" he said, looking at Allura. The princess was distressed, struggling to reestablish her connection with Keith. She still remained the level headed leader she had always been.

"There isn't another way" she announced, defeated. Shiro nodded and put on his helmet.

"Then I'll go" he declared. Before he could leave, Allura pushed him back by the chest. 

"You will do no such thing. You'd become a liability to us all."

Lance would have been endeared by Allura's caring for the paladins. But every minute they spent bickering on how to go about it, the more time went on without Keith being safe. And Lance was getting more than antsy about it.

"My lion's the leanest anyway" he bragged and bolted for blue's hangar.

Alarmed chatter followed behind and Shiro tried to stop him but he was too late. Allura even attempted to shut down the doors before Lance could slip through, but he did anyway. Setting up the preferred controls he fired up the lion and prepared for lift off.

"Lance, don't go! You'll die out there!"

Hunk was begging him in his ear. He was lucky he wasn't looking him in the face. Hunk's puppy dog face would always get to him.

Nothing could get to him now.

"I have to, Hunk! Save a slice of pie for me when I get back with him."

And with that, he took off, leaving behind the rest of the team.  That didn't mean they would let up on the comms still.

"Lance," crackled Coran's voice. "I don't see how I'll be able to sway you but you should know that it will be harder to get through after Keith's recent attempt. Cardot is a defensive planet;  it's field of protection becomes nearly impossible to penetrate after a failed attempt. Survival...it looks dim."

Lance tensed at this but Coran was right about one thing: he didn't sway easy.

"You're lion wasn't built for this, Lance!" Allura cried.

He could see what they were talking about. The field was now not moving at all and there was no safe way past the electricity. They upped their defenses tenfold.

Lance let out a cry of anguish and activated his thrusters. " Guess we're gonna have to do this the Lance way."

 He then in turn activated his ice ray, sending a string of frozen water toward the plate of wires before him. The plate dented and the electricity around it crackled before it died, dampened by the ice. Lance pushed forward breaking up the surrounding infrastructure.

"Lance, what are you doing?" Pidge exclaimed. "You're gonna hurt the planet!"

 Lance shook his head as he deflected another round of electricity with his ice ray. "It's fine! There's no people here." Amping up the power, he pressed forward, following the path of damaged pipes.

"Look at me, Keith. Coming to your rescue like always. Gotta clean up the mess once again."

 The rest of the team quit badgering him but as a result it was eerily quiet and Lance felt suspicious. In fact, all of the civilians they could see from the air had vanished, leaving the town abandoned. He suspected that they were shut up in their homes but he knew they would only do that if they were some sort of danger.

 A chill went up Lance's spine.

"Proceding on foot" he whispered, parking the blue lion in the middle of town. As he floated down in the water, he activated his beyard for good measure. The area appeared safe after a quick scan.

 Parking the blue lion in the middle of the open turned out to be a big mistake.

 He was tackled to the ground before he could take another step and out of surprise he let go of his beyard. Lance rolled onto his back and took a swing at the his attackers, lunging at the man.

Only it wasn't a man.

 Lance hovered a fist in surprise as he stared into the eyes of a Galra soldier.

 Those few seconds cost him his luck Lance was yanked off of the soldier and thrown onto the ground. Landing on his side, he tried to get up but he was pinned down at his back. Even though they were late, Coran's voice exploded in his ear.

"Lance, get out of there! It's infested with Galra!"

He rolled his eyes. No shit. Then how did they beat him here?

Lance clawed at the earth. "Let me go!" he grunted.

 The Galra soldier chuckled and did as he asked. But when Lance got to his knees he saw that there was no place to go. Surrounding him was an army of soldiers, with explosives attached to all of them, poised to attack. Except now Lance didn't pose as much of a threat away from his lion.

 He turned to her in a panic and saw soldiers already flooding Her. 

"Hey! Leave her alone!" But they didn't retreat. The leader stared down Lance. He looked around desperate to find Keith, but he was no where to be found. He scowled at the Galra.

"Where's my friend? What did you do with him?!" 

 They didn't answer. Lance watched in horror as they dragged the lion away and speculated on the things that must have been done to the red lion. For all he knew, Keith was dead.

 The soldier walked over to Lance and squatted in front of him. He looked at him as if he was examining him and he held his fist in the air. One by one, the soldiers moved in position. Lance would soon learn why.

He felt his very being shift when he figured it out.

The sobs were deafening in his ears, telling him to get out, just GET OUT of that horrible place. It's a trap, get out, you'll be safe. Back at the castle. We're sorry about Keith.

And Lance knew he had failed him.

He rose to his feat in one final attempt to clobber the general in the face. When he rushed at the soldier the man countered him and shoved him back.

 Right into a trench.

 Lance hung on the edge with his fingertips and tried to pull himself up. The soldier came to gaze upon him with something in his hand.

A single grenade.

"Goodbye, paladin" he hissed maliciously and gave the rest the signal.

 Lance always believed his final thoughts would be about Keith. but as he tumbled in the darkness he found himself thinking of his mother.

_"Nothing will tear us apart."_

He now knew that this was not true.


	4. Chapter 4

Shiro had never seen a planet explode in his entire life.

He'd always hoped he'd never get to, what with them being defenders of the universe and all. With the Galra ruling the galaxy, Shiro found that it was very hard to get what you wanted.

 He looked at the two who had seen a planet destroyed before. It wasn't any easier the second time for the Alteans. Especially after losing not one, but two faithful Voltron paladins.

 Reality seemed to come to a screeching hault. Mentally averting his eyes from the wreckage before him, he looked at his robot arm, twitching his fingers voluntarily.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Five fingers. Three Paladins. It shouldn't be this way. Was this real?

It was very much real.

 He was pulled back to reality by a soft hand on his arm and looked back to see Allura. She scanned his eyes, hoping to find some reconciliation with what just happened.

There was none.

"Shiro" she gasped, voice cracking and eyes wide. "They will pay for this."

"This" meant a number of things. They would pay for Hunk's horrible loss, leaving him sobbing on the floor, crying out his best friends name over and over. They would pay for Pidge's loss, tearing her away from the best partner she had ever come to know.  She hadn't come to terms with it yet the way her hands were pressed firmly to her mouth, body trembling in shock. An understandable reaction to losing another brother to her.

 They would pay for the murder of his own brother and espoused son. That's what they meant to him.

Allura tried to embrace him once more, but Shiro pulled away. Instead, he ran for the black lion , his only hope for this nightmare to cease.

This time, Allura didn't try to close the hangars. She sunk to her knees, crying softly with Coran as Pidge and Hunk followed Shiro. Grief consumed them all manifesting itself into a thirst for revenge. Before the Galra ships could get away, they would take care of them.

 Once the black lion touched space, Shiro rushed at a ship using the mouth cannon to smash it to smithereens. As each explosion subsided Shiro kept going again and again,  blowing ships out of the sky. On one occasion one of Shiro's kills crashed into another and the two went up in flames together. The yellow lion emerged from the smoke, dragging a ship in it's jaws.

 The microphones were Shiro's only way to stay in touch with the other lions when they were disbanded on their missions. Whenever he felt anxious about them on their own, he would just send a signal for one of them to answer.

"Keith, you doing alright?" he would ask. Only seconds would pass by before he would receive an answer.

"Right behind you, Shiro."

 Instead of the badgering between the red and blue lion, Shiro received audio from the yellow lion. As he barreled his way through ships, throwing himself up against the Galra, his grief bled through the air, swarming Shiro like flies.

"Lance. Oh my god, Lance. P-please come back. I can't lose you, I can't...you can't be gone...come back."

 No matter how much Hunk begged,Lance was gone. And it was all Shiro's fault.

"My fault. My fault. My fault."

It was like losing Matt and Sam all over again. He always thought they would find them before he lost anyone else. Before Pidge would have to go through anything like this ever again.

But here they were, team reduced to the three of them. They couldn't form Voltron. They were back at square one.

 Anger consumed Shiro like a wave as he tumbled toward a ship. Befre he could make a safe landing, his vision became clouded and he crashed his lion getting lodged between the walls of metal. Shaky hands reached his face as he became aware of something horrible and wet dribbling down his chin.

 The tears for Kerberos finally made themselves known.

 In the bleakness of space, far away from the castle,  the black lion and her paladin wept for their fallen brethren. 


	5. Chapter 5

The last thing Lance remembered falling into the trench was the sky going white and then darkness. The dark was the first thing he remembered when he woke up too.

 He jolted awake and in turn, smacked his face into the surface  before him.  Completely engulfed in darkness, Lance became aware of his level position and started to feel around in the dark.  The wall before him felt of tightly knitted rope and twig. He had just enough space to edge his hands up his body to be by his face, pressing up against the surface.

 The air was extremely stuffy Lance noticed when he realized he wasn't wearing his helmet anymore. He'd suffocate in here if he didn't get out.

 Starting to panic, he balled his hands into fists and banged on the wall.

"Hey! Anyone out there?! Help!"

Lance started to claw at the wall until some of the rope-like material started to fray. Pulling the seams apart gave him rug burn along his palms but he didn't care. He just needed to get out of the tiny room. The capsule. The...

 coffin.

Lance could see that's just what it was when he was finally free. horrified, he put one hand to his heart and reached for his beyard.  Instead of finding the gun, he found nothing.

"What?!" He yelped. Lance took this moment to survey the area and tried to figure out where he was.

He couldn't tell. It looked like a moon of some sorts with sweeping caverns and deep craters, one of which the casket of his was in. All Lance knew was that it wasn't a planet so it definitely wasn't Cardot. 

Cardot.

 The moment flashed through him at once. Keith electrocuted. Team panic. Lance is sent to Cardot. Flying. Landing. Galra. Shiro. Bomb.

"Keith..." He choked, holding onto his sides. Keith would have lived had he got there in time.

"Aaaaaauuuugh!"

A scream was building up in his throat, but this one did not come from him.  Lance whirled around, poised to attack but wound up facing the rock that the casket was propped up on. Looking up, he found himself face-to-face with a small alien in stature, pointed ears ,smooth green skin and yellow eyes, with the Blue beyard in its grip, inches from Lance's nose.

"Whoa woah! Hey buddy! Don't you think we could talk this out?"

The alien onced him over and then jumped from the rock onto the platform Lance was standing on. Lance backed to the edge of the cliff, hands out in defense.

"I'm not gonna hurt you, um..." Lance stopped and looked to the sky for answers. "This would be a lot easier if you could understand me," he groaned.

The alien paused, but did not lower the beyard. "I understand."

 Lance almost stumbled in surprise but quickly composed himself. he remembered how the Arusians and Balmarans had been able to communicate through basic English so he supposed this shouldn't come as much as a surprise. Still, this was a game changer.

"Hey, how did I get here? What happened...is there anyone else here?" he asked hopeful, thinking of Keith.

And then, his stomach dropped. "The blue lion?"

 The alien started looking a bit annoyed but it grabbed lances hand and beckoned him from the edge. Together they walked across the terrain.

"You are small and frail. I help you get strength. Then I speak."

Lance scoffed at the insult especially since the alien was several feet shorter than him.But he was right. He felt an exhaustion latch onto him something awful and trudged along the road,gloomy for his friends. If he had gotten stuck like Keith, he knew that Shiro would have gone after him.

The planet...

 Lance attempted a sprint, limping but determined. He only got a few feet before it became hard to breathe, but he scaled enough distance so that he could see the horizon. The only problem was that he could not see what he wanted to see.

"The planet?" he whimpered, searching the vastness of space. The alien had no problem catching up to him.

"We're on moon of it. Completely destroyed. None survivors 'side you. Come, small one. Strength waits."

 Lance couldn't believe it. When they got to the alien's setup, he sunk to the floor, eyes agape. He was truly all alone. No Blue, no Paladins. This couldn't be happening. Voltron had finally met their match.

 Apparently he had said that part out loud because the alien perked up from where they were retrieving a boulder. Pushing it up again Lance so he could rest against it, his face lit up in recognition. He touched Lance's armor.

"Blue paladin...," he whispered. Lance nodded.

"Yes. Yeah! That's me! Do you know Voltron? Or the blue lion?!"

The alien glared at him once again but sat on the opposite side of Lance. Dropping some materials to the floor, including the blue beyard, he began building a fire.

"I am Bunti and Voltron was no aid to me."

Bunti began to explain everything to Lance. He had been hiding from the Galra when they first arrived deep in the trenches of Cardot.  He was ready to blast off with his supplies when Lance had tumbled into the trench after him with a gouge on his his head due to the ride on the way down. Unable to leave him, Bunti shoved him into one of his woven caskets and escaped through the ground until they came out the other end in space . The planet had caved and collapsed behind him.

 Lance couldn't believe he had risked his life to save him but that didn't explain his hatred for Voltron. When asked about it, Bunti ignited.

"Because of Cardot! You failed to replenish it! Voltron was nowhere. They saved others..."

 Lance felt extreme guilt because of this. He knew Allura didn't want to risk Voltron, but maybe they still could have done something. Instead of that, her stupid stunt had cost Keith his life. He didn't know how he would be able to face her knowing this.

Bunti sulked, stirring the pot on the fire. "I think Galra done worse. Voltron never took family away."

Lance grimaced at that, thinking of his family on Earth. Even though they weren't technically gone, he hadn't seen or heard from them in three years. All because he was busy defending the universe.

"The Galra took your family?" he asked, thinking of Pidge. In fact, Bunti kind of reminded Lance of the green paladin. Everything torn away by those monsters. By the look of his moon shack, Bunti didn't seem to have much left.

 The alien nodded, serving Lance up a bit of food.  Lance took it carefully, leaning back against the rock.

"My sister...she small like you. Defenseless. They take her and mother away. I escaped time ago."

 Now this made Lance think of Shiro. At the reminder of his mentor, tears pricked in his eyes. This poor alien had lost hope in everything. Now that he had lost his other family, Lance wasn't sure about hope anymore.

But he still pretended. Because that's what he did in the face of adversity. Sometimes it made sense to make something up to keep him moving.

He shook his head. "You say that like you are never going to see them again. Look, I'm sorry about Cardot, but if I don't get back to my friends, who I _know_ are still alive, then Voltron will have plenty more opportunities to let planets die. I'm sure you don't want to watch while that happens."

Bunti looked at Lance, sadly. " I never wish such things."

Lance leaned on his knees. "You won't have to. Listen, if you take me out to space tomorrow, then maybe we'll be in enough range for my team to find me. It's gonna be harder without my communicator but we'll figure it out. Maybe we could find your family."

Bunti's face lit up in childlike wonder. "Really?"

Lance was starting to feel a little proud of his team. Voltron could really work wonders.

"Oh yeah," he said, leaning back and crossing his legs. "Voltron could fix this no problem. Just say you'll help me find my friends, okay?"

Bunti nodded and stood up. "First, you rest. We leave in many minutes. I'll take you on Galaxy run."

 Lance watched sadly as his only company sauntered off in the dark to their home. Struggling to keep his tears to a minimum, he thought of his friends who had been torn away from him just as abruptly as his family. Now that he could see just how many peoples Zarcon had affected, he took it more personally. Only now without his team by his side the impossibilities seemed to blossom.

 Burying his face into the rock, he vowed he would help Bunti find his family in the name of Keith. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry it took me a while to update. I hope I can finish this story before 2016 is up :). Thank you so much for sticking with me <3

 Lance had been betrayed many times. Like the time when Shiro asked who broke Allura's heirloom vase and Hunk caved and told him Lance did it. Also there was a time when Keith dodged a training gladiator so Lance would get hit and not him. Or when Pidge planned a surprise for Allura and Coran and Lance wasn't allowed in on it because she was afraid he would give it away. There were many times, but Lance always got over it.

 Not this time.

 Lance rolled over in a final attempt to cling onto sleep. When it became evident he wasn't going to get it back he groaned,msitting up and rubbing his back where it had been imprinted on the ground. He felt like he had been out for ages even though it hadn't been the most comfortable sleep he had.

Wait.

 Lance practically lept up from where he had been sitting, patting himself down for some measure of time. How long had it been? Minutes? Hours?

"You're supposed to be looking for them!" he griped to himself and smacked his palm to his forehead.

Right. No helmet. No beyard either. Even though his beyard had been right beside him last he remembered. All that remained by him was an open pod, ready for him and Bunti's space travels. Scanning the area, his eyes finally fell upon Bunti's shack, just a few yards away. Breaking into a soft sprint, he jogged over to it and stood in front of the curtain, knocking on the wall.

"Hey, Bunti! There's a pod out here, are we moving or what?"

 Lance waited a solid thirty seconds, studying the divets in the hut before he couldn't wait anymore. Pushing the curtain aside he clomped through and crossed his arms. His eyebrows raised as he was met with more confusion.

"Um...?"

The hut was completely empty. It looked like it was meant to be that way, no holes in the walls and spotless, like it was cleaned every day. There wasn't a trace that anyone had been there.

"But...I saw...?"

 Lance turned around to see that he actually wasn't the only thing in the room. A small bookshelf rested in the corner left to the door and it had been pushed aside revealing an opening to a staircase. The only source of light came from there.

Curiosity spiked and Lance slowly walked towards the first step. He stepped slowly, testing the wooden stairs for any type of creakiness. Once satisfied, he continued to descend the stairs until he reached the bottom.

The room was significantly colder. Lance assumed it was because he was now underground and decided that meant he could be less cautious with his steps. Moving quickly, he dashed behind the staircase.

 The room was a mess, like everything that would comfortably fit upstairs was squished down here. Boxes upon boxes sat on top of each other and even though they were filled to the brim, papery sheets and scribbled cloth littered the floor. Not a single surface of the wall was left uncovered.

 The work done into the collages and puzzles was nothing like anything Lance had ever committed to. Approaching a stretch of newspaper he touched it, reading into the fine print to see what it was about.

 The article talked about moving to a planet, sucking it dry of the resources and destroying it. Lance thought it was sad but had no severe tie to it until he saw the word he had always feared: **EARTH.**

 His heart plummeted. Bunti was small. He couldn't possibly have plans as big as this. But the evidence was there and it told Lance that Bunti had put a lot of time into thinking of it.

 Starting to panic, Lance skimmed the rest of the text and sure enough more more plans were dumped into this mission. And of course like all of things, Voltron had to be part of it somehow. Lances eyes froze on a picture of Allura.

Surrounding her was statistics on all of the paladins, present and old. Lance saw himself and under the blue paladin it had listed his age in earth days, compatibility with the lion, beyard,  element and expected survival rate. Once they were rid of him, of course.

 He had to swallow back bile as he raised a shaky finger and rested it on a picture of his lion. A mixture of hope and confusion swirled inside him as he read a particular statistic on it.

**Location: Moon of Cardot.**

 "You're here?" he heard himself say.  Practically stumbling over his own feet, he rounded the corner and trampled up the stairs taking the ripped piece of information from the wall. According to it, Blue was in the closest cavern to the shack on the right. Lance skated on the dirt until he came to the edge and sat down, boosting him off of the cliff. Climbing down,  he landed on the edge against the opening of the cave.

 And sitting there, bound in shackles and fabric and rope, was the Blue Lion.

"Oh my god...," Lance was at the ropes, tugging and pulling while Blue registered him. She growled in warning, filling his head with precautions but he shook her off.

 "I knew there was something weird about that little guy,"  he cursed even though he had no clue. Bunti couldn't really be behind this, could he?

 Lance's hands shook at the thought of the basement walls. He had to warn the others. Have to get back to them somehow.  Once he freed Blue he would. Then he could get off of this  godforsaken moon. If only he could get this paw free...

 Lance stopped in his tracks when he heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps descending into the crater. When he turned to face Bunti, he was filled with an immense sense of hate and betrayal. Unlike the last time, the alien did not have his Beyard.

 They both stood frozen momentarily stricken by each other's presence. Then Lance spat out just about everything that was on his mind.

" I thought you were saving me out of the goodness of your heart but after finding this and your little cartel basement in that shack!? You're absolutely crazy! Blue-she's- you're nuts, man! Let her go!"

Bunti looked at Lance like he had just asked the impossible. The minute Lance steps closer to apprehend him he sprung to attack him.

Lance hit the ground and scrambled to get his bearing, desperately trying for the upper hand. He got one swing in when Bunti kicked him in the jaw, sending him sprawling on the ground. Blue roared in his head.

 "I'm trying!" he gasped but it wasn't enough. The two struggled on the ground even though it was more like Lance was the one having a problem. He tried to toss Bunti over his shoulders but despite his small stature, Bunti was sturdy and made up for his height with strength. Once he had him pinned to the ground, Lance had nowhere to go.

"No worry, paladin," he sneered. "I'll name Voltron a hero once you're delivered to the Galra."

 Lance stiffened up the mention of the monster and looked up to see the dreaded Sendak with another. He stared at the Galra defiantly though his lip was quivering. Sendak was busy admiring his latest catch, a prize of a lion. Turning to Lance with a sneer, he picked him up by the armor handle and dragged him towards the ship.

"On the cat's day," he growled. "The mice will pay."

 

*****

 

 Lance had never seen the inside of a Galra prison before but over the course of three years,  he got a better understanding than early on. Shiro had been a lot better about opening up to them after getting to know each other. It just took some time. As Allura had one said, "it's a mystical bond that cannot be forced."

 It wasn't easy for Shiro though and he couldn't paint a clear enough picture so that Lance could really understand. It sounded cool though and that's all that mattered to him. He wished he could turn back time to when they were just stories.

He watched in disgust as Bunti discussed his reward for bringing a Voltron paladin to Sendak.

" You said you could bring family to me" he reminded him. Sendak rolled his eye.

"Of course. You will get what you deserve in due time."

 Lance heard the arena before he saw it, deafening cheers that spilled out of the dome and encompassed the space around him.  His feet felt just as numb as the area of his arm under the Galra soldiers grip. Stumbling over the dirt, the soldiers shoved him forward and he landed on his knees just inside the Colosseum.

Lance tried to get away, turning back to the door but he was too late. It shut with a _clang!_ and the caging rained down from the sky, separating the innards of the arena from the seats of the audience. Several cheering members threw themselves at the separator, banging props to create more noise than there already was. There was so much noise that Lance couldn't make out what they were chanting.

 When a large club was thrown at his feet, Lance jumped back right into the Galra announcer. This one gave him a toothy grin and kicked it in his direction. He gripped a mic in his pocket and the speakers crackled to life.

"Fellooooooooow Galra! I do believe we have a Voltron Paladin in our midst!"

The sound zeroed in on negativity, throwing boo's and profanities in Lance's direction. If  looks could kill, he'd be a dead man. The extreme attention he was suddenly pooled into his cheeks and he was in disbelief with himself.

"Seriously, Lance??," he squeaked. "You're gonna die and you're _embarrassed_ about it?!"

 The soldier seemed to notice his discomfort and squat down to eye level, grabbing Lance's ear. "Aww he looks a little lonely. Whattaya say we give 'im some company??"

 This elicited an extreme positive response from the crowd and Lance's head buzzed from the commotion. When the announcer pushed him away again, he hustled to the other side of the arena and opened a cage door, shutting himself inside in an observation booth. Lance noticed that the wall was lined with cage doors and each cage held a horrible creature inside, snarling with glowing yellow eyes. Lance felt frozen stuck to the ground when an alarm sounded and the doors to the cages lifted, allowing the creatures to roam free. Well, not "roam". More like "charge."

 In a panic, he swung the club as hard as he could bashing the first creature in the side. Climbing on top, he kicked an approaching one in the face and used the weakened body to put some barrier between himself and the others. Gnawing and gnashing teeth became his atmosphere and Lance fought at all the corners, trying to keep the beasts at bay. He could only do so much though as he was becoming increasingly outnumbered. If only he had his beyard this would be so much easier. Despite all his training as a paladin, this quickly became a shit show.

 As Lance brought the club down on one of the beasts, it yelped in pain and the others shrunk back, teeth still bared but defensively intimidated. The way they all lined up in a pack reminded Lance of the ones in the stands.

Of course.

The beasts in the ring were feral Galra.

 For some reason it tugged at Lance's heart that they would use their own kind for sport. He reminded himself that Zarcon was the most vile being in the universe so maybe that wasn't very surprising.

After he beat back another one with the club he doubled over and emptied his stomach onto the ground. He heard Galra laughter in the stands.

 Lance prepared himself for another round of beating when Shiro's words suddenly echoed in his head. _"We're a defense force. We do the defending, not the reckless killing."_  The guilt filled the space that once held food and he braced for impact from the remaining beast in the ring. It threw itself at Lance and pinned him to the ground.

 Spitting in the dirt he stared into the beast's eyes and prepared for the mauling of his life.

"G-go ahead. Do your worst..."

 The eyes were an unknown shape glowing a foreign yellow but somehow Lance found a homely familiarity in them. Unlike the others, these spoke to him in forms of comfort and sincerity, but mostly in apology. He thought he was going crazy, but the hesitation in the beast's movements confirmed he was not. Instead of the expected joy, all he felt was immense fear in recognition.

"Keith?"


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been way too long, my b.

Lance remembered the first time he had experienced anti-gravity in space. Even though he had been on the ship for many years, he had never actually messed with it before. After the "Haunted Castle Incident," he hadn't really found interest in it again. Until one night his curiosities got the best of him.

All he had known was that he didn't want to do it alone.

So, late that night, he snuck into Keith's barracks and proposed he come with him. Fearing he would end up hurting himself or wrecking the castle, Keith had no choice but to oblige. But he'd always have fun on Lance's endeavors, as his recklessness was something that got him hooked a long time ago. Something to bond with his own sense. Lance now has fond memories of anti-gravity.

He felt like he was experiencing it all over again in the Arena.

For a second, they just acknowledged eachother, taking in one another's presence. Then, Lance ran at him with open arms.

"Keith! Oh my god...!"

In a single instant, Keith lunged at Lance, pinning him to the ground. The audience roared with pleasure as the feral Galra prepared to slaughter the puny paladin and for a moment, Lance's eyes grew wide with fear as he prepared for his end. Keith merely flipped him over and grabbed the paladin suit handle in his fangs, dragging him on the ground.

"Listen," he spat through a clenched jaw. "If you're hurt, they'll lemme take 'ou bac to muh cell. T' 'finish you off.' Get th' picture?"

 Lance didn't and he didn't really want to become Galra lunch. And even in Keith's severely injured state, he was alive and he trusted him. He would run into the stands and kill Sendak if he had asked him to. Just knowing he was alive was enough ecstasy to make him hyperventilate.

"You're alive, oh my god, Keith, you're alive...," he gasped,  speaking as if he were to stop, Keith would disappear from his grasp. Or rather he would vanish from Keith's.

 When Keith flung him into the cell he scrambled to his feet only to be pushed down again. Keith was shoved in afterwards, sending Lance sprawling to the other side. He reached out for something to pull himself up with and found the bars to the other side of the cell. It was dark and it reeked of bloody flesh, but there was just enough light for him to see down the corridor.

There was a little red light that hung above the door exiting the prison, and cells ran along the wall until they stopped at his own. Inside each cell held a horrible robeast the size of Keith, but Lance was focused on what was laying in the middle of the walkway. Bunti's body lay limp, with his head twisted at an unnatural angle, facing Lance's way. His lifeless eyes told Lance that he hadn't gotten what he wanted. 

Swallowing another bout of bile, he tuned back and reached for Keith. He stopped himself when he noticed the chunk missing from his back and the bloody stream running through his dark, purple fur. His eyes traced paths down to his legs, which were engineered to look like a dog's. They were scarred and knobby and definitely didn't encompass just one set of bones. They were twice their original size yet stunted, to make his movements bully yet clumsy. It looked painful.

Keith's floppy ears twitched when Lance's mouth opened in question. " I didn't think you'd ever find me this way," he grumbled, voice clearer now that he could steady himself. That was enough push for Lance to be able to find his words.

"I mean, yeah, neither did I! The last time I saw you, you were less...purple? And looked like a, uh, human? What did they do to you?! They turned you into a monster! Wait until Shiro finds out ...you're alive..."

"Lance."

"And Allura! She told us you were dead! Boy, was she wrong! Even though you two have that weird Altean-bond-thingy. I don't know why it wouldn't work before but she can fix you and then--"

Keith's body slammed into Lance as he roared, "THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH ME! They didn't _do_ anything!" He said this even as he wobbled on his oblong legs. Lance shook his head.

"You seem super bent on that, no offense, so, care to explain?"

Keith glared at him before he lied down, folding his legs underneath him, suddenly self conscious. Lance just couldn't stop staring, but he did owe him an explanation. He just didn't know how to go about saying it. 

"I'm part Galra."

That was one way to do it.

Lance forced a laugh. "Uh no no. We already established you're Altean. You got turned into a Galra, that's true, but Allura would know if you really were one."

Keith huffed a sigh. Like always, Lance was making it harder than it had to be. He clenched his eyes shut as he admitted the second worst thing to admit to him.

"Allura already knows."

Okay. Lance couldn't lie. It did hurt that Keith's supposedly "number one" wasn't actually his "number one" on his list of confiding things. But this did explain how Allura seemed to take more pity on him lately. Lance tried to conceal his feelings of betrayal.

"Does, uh, anyone else know?" He tried to push away the thought of Hunk and Pidge, his _best friends_ , keeping a secret from him. Keith wouldn't dare tell Shiro this. Too much harsh history between that kind and him. Keith lowered his head.

"No. Not that I know of. And I'm keeping it that way."  Keith actually turned around and ignoring the earlier warnings, Lance put himself between him and the wall.

"What about, Shiro? What about when he finds out?" Keith pushed him out of the way again.

"Don't you think I thought about that? He's not gonna. Because I'm not going back. Listen, Lance, I tried to escape, believe me." He motioned to his back the best he could. "I couldn't do it. I'm too weak. You should get out of here while you can."

Lance was incredulous.

"Are you _kidding_ me? You're joking, you must be."

Keith didn't budge. "I'm staying here."  Lances face scrunched up in annoyance. Out of all the places to be stubborn why pick here? He nudged the Galra monster once more.

"No, you're going to help me find a way out of here. Use your wizard powers. C'mon, like you practiced. Or maybe some Galra super strength? I don't know."

Keith _did_ use his Galra strength. To shove him off again.

" I said I'm staying here! What part of that don't you understand?!"

"The whole freaking part!" Lance retorted. "Why?"

"Because things won't be the same if I go back!"

"Because of one little thing?"

"It's not one thing, Lance."

"Then what is it?"

" I don't want to see you anymore!"

Lance could have pretended like he hadn't heard that. He could hold onto a few more seconds of naiivity and pretend like everything was fine. But Keith was a monster, their lions were captured, and the rest of the team was god knows where. Things were far from fine.

 It was all he could do to not completely fall apart as he simply asked, "what?"

 Keith wouldn't look Lance in the eyes anymore but the answer wasn't hard for him to come up with. He had been thinking about this ever since he had gone through his transformation. Lance could tell he was pretending like it was a difficult decision.

"I'm breaking up with you. Things are too complicated now and I know you wouldn't look at me the same way again so what's the point? You said it, I'm a monster. What kind of a monster helps pilot Voltron?"

He couldn't believe he didn't understand the pressing issue.

"This isn't about Voltron," said Lance. "For once, let it not be about Voltron, okay? It's about you and me-it's always been about you and me. I mean, to me anyways. Now I know you only care about yourself."

 Keith still wasn't looking at him but he did move closer ever so slightly and sighed.

" Lance, please. You know that's not true."

 Lance was about to argue the point but then he realized that this was, in fact, not true. He thought what they had was special enough but he knew that he didn't have history with him like the others. Especially with one other specific pilot.

"You don't want to come back for me? Fine," he confessed through a wavering voice. "But you have to. For Shiro. He's done so much for you, some things you can't even name. He would never forgive me if he knew that I had found you but didnt return with you. You owe it to him. You owe  so much to him that this wouldn't even make up for half of it. But it's a step. It's one tiny thing. Don't you care about him?"

 When Keith finally looked at Lance he knew he had broken the surface. But knowing that Shiro would always come first in his life really stung. He knew that's how it should have been for him but he wasn't made to be a soldier. Maybe he wasn't meant to pilot a lion. He probably wasn't even meant to love Keith. But he did and that's why he was bringing him back to Shiro.

Keith's yellow eyes sharpened as he stared at Lance and exchanged a look of mutual hurt. He took a deep breath. "What's your plan?"


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...I obviously didn't meet my deadline and I don't think I'll be able to beat the 20th either. im sorry to anyone who's actually enjoying this. I'm trying to focus on school and this story is making me hate myself in a weirdly stupid way??? Nonetheless I'm going to finish it. Thank you for sticking with me <3

Lance wanted to sit down and plan everything out, but every time they seemed to be getting somewhere they were interrupted by another guard passing by from the arena. Keith was becoming increasingly irritated, feet tapping and growls building and Lance knew it was only a matter of time before he got his head bitten off. As much as he loved him he didn't want to spend anymore time in this ratty cell with him, Considering it was Galra and he had gotten his heart literally smashed to pieces but he was still unsure of what they were going to do. All he knew was that they wanted out.

 The arena door closed one more time before Keith ran for the bars.

"We are probably not going to get a better time than this. We've got to go now."

 Lance couldn't help the tug at his heart at the use of the term "we." He heaved a sigh and shruggged.

"Careful. You don't know what you're doing."

 Keith got on his hind legs and grabbed the bars of their holding cell. Lance watched in awe as his back muscles flexed and claws curled around the poles, heaving them apart. Soon, Keith had them pried at a bend and forced them aside, making a gap big enough to get through. He hobbled out and Lance followed him down the Corridor of cells.

 Lance peered out at the end of the hallway which extended in three different directions. Except for the one disappearing around the corner to the right, there were no soldiers around. Keith took this as no concerning boundaries and darted out into the empty space immediately. Lance had no choice but to follow him.

"Do you even have a plan?" he hissed, darting eyes looking for impending soldiers. Keith didn't answer, only stopping to come across a window which he pressed up against.

"We can't leave here without the lions. I'm going to find red but you have to find the blue lion by yourself. The tricky part is going to be the Beyards."

 He started to leave but Lance grabbed a handful of his Galra fur. Keith emitted a pained whine from his throat. 

"What?"

Lance frowned. "So, you're just going to leave me? To find it by myself?" Keith nodded as if it was the most obvious thing.

"Uh, yes! God, Lance, you're not going to have me around forever!"

Rather than complying, Lance felt himself seething. "Why are you trying to fight me so much? Why can't you just have this?" And Keith glared right back at him.

"I can't do this right now. Just go find your beyard and meet me in the east wing. If you don't see me just blastoff. They can't have the lions no matter what."

"But Keith-"

"Voltron comes first. No. Matter. What." He was pressing, looking more serious in the light. But Lance still wanted to fight him. As he opened his mouth for more retorts, a burst of laser zoomed passed his head and exploded against the wall. Keith and Lance's heads whipped up in the direction of the commotion and sure enough there were Galra soldiers waiting for them. Or more like, charging at them.

 Keith wasted no time putting himself between Lance and the soldiers and even went so far to swing at some of them with his giant claws. That was before he pushed Lance out of the way in the other direction.

"Go!" Keith roared. "Go find the lion! I'll catch up!"

 Serving no use without a weapon , Lance obeyed and took off. Only when he got around the hall in through the doors did he realize that he had no idea where to start. The ship was huge and he'd be lucky to be able to contact Keith even when he would only find his beyard. 

 But that thought gave him an idea. If he managed to connect with Blue, she would be able to tell him where she was. He knew Keith had been able to do it so how hard could it be? He and Blue already had a bond that was nearly inseparable.

 He took a deep breath and tried to concentrate.

 His mind brought him back to Keith looking out the window across to the connection of the ship. Inside that section held a chamber and  inside that chamber was the blue lion. He could feel it. Only the energy was worrisome rather than comforting. He needed to get there fast.

"Im coming!" he said aloud and rounded the corner-

-right into a Galra soldier.

 The guard snarled at Lance and reached for him but Lance was quick and dodged his blow. Before he could make a move for his weapon, Lance kicked him in the chest and sent him to the ground. Not wanting to resort to violence he merely used the weapon to knock him on the head leaving him in a daze. And then continued his trek. One of the many things he learned as a Voltron paladin.

Lance began to run faster afraid that if he slowed down he'd get cornered by more soldiers. It was likely that more were on the way.

 When he finally reached the end he was met with the door to the cell and the bond with the blue lion with stronger than ever. But he found that there was no way for him to open it unless he had a weapon to blast the lock free so he ran back to the fallen go over soldier and pulled his gun from his limp grasp.

He then realized that the gun was in fact, the blue beyard.

"Seriously, Lance?" He groaned. "How stupid can you be?"

 He tried to keep himself calm as he heard more soldiers approaching due to the commotion he and Keith had caused earlier. He didn't even want to begin to imagine what kind of crap Keith was dealing with or even if he was surviving his bit. With a shaky grip he hoisted the weapon onto his hip and blasted at the control panel for the cargo room. The panel sparked as it died and the doors welcomed Lance to saunter right in and collect his prize.

 Unlike on the moon, the blue lion had its protective force field around it, suspending it in mid air. Lance stood frozen in relief as pictograms and messages flooded through his mind behind his eyes. And then he remembered the Galra coming for him and decided that a reunion wasn't a good idea.

"Okay, buddy. Let's cut the festivities short and get the quiz nak out of here. You with me?" he suggested as he put his hand up against the field. He waited as it dissipated and blue assumed a defensive stance roaring up a welcome. Lance tried his best to clamber inside and get himself situated but the Galra began rounding the corner leaving him no time to get re-acquainted. In a flash of panic he forced the thrusters alive and slammed his palm on a button while forcing a lever forward.

"Ice ray!" He screeched.

 The blue lion flew backwards up against the wall as the thrusters remained activated and a line of ice projected from the mouth out into the hallway. Several soldiers yelled in agony and fright as they were frozen where they stood ordered to take the lion down by any means necessary. Some soldiers lucky not to get hit waited with bated breath as they prepared for the blue lion's next act of retaliation. And Lance wasn't slow to confirm their suspicions.

With a cry of battle of his own, he commanded the lion forward barreling through the remaining Galra soldiers like a bunch of bowling pins. The movement did a number on the walls, pulling the door frame apart and the support of the walls down. This time Lance activated the thrusters downward and he and the lion burst through the ceiling. It broke free,  welcoming the vacuum of space into the hanger and he and blue were sucked out immediately.

 When they stopped spinning,  Lance let his lion clamber up to the top of the ship so he could see the expanse of the entire area. He knew where Keith was immediately, eyes drawn to the flaming lasers exploding from the floor section of the ship. Small explosions littered the area and Lance knew that Keith was definitely responsible for that.  He couldn't help but smile as he saw the red lion emerge from the smoke and flames ready to hurl another blow. But Lance's smile faded as he noticed the erratic way Red was flying and the desperate shooting of the fire that barely grazed the approaching ships. Red was beginning to take heavy fire.

"Keith!" Lance tried the comms but only static repeated back to him. "Keith, are you okay?!"

 It was no use. The communicators were down. Lance winced as Red took a heavy hit from one of the support ships and delayed with a rebound. Unable to heed Keith's earlier request, Lance barreled at the opponents with all he had.

 The momentary stunting of the enemy allowed Keith to get a better bearing with his lion. But judging by his flight pattern he wouldn't be able to last much longer. Praying to the gods, Lance smashed his communicator in a desperate attempt to reach him. To his pleasure and surprise, it crackled to life.

"Keith! Quit showing off or you'll get yourself killed! We gotta hightail it outta here! Now!"

 A weak grunt emitted back at him through the mic and faded in and out helplessly.

"We gotta...horizon...escape..."

Lance whipped his head toward the empty part of space where the novas above them pulsed and glowed with energy. There was no asteroid belt to escape into but Lance knew that that way meant freedom.

"Let's do it!" Lance yelled as he already pushed on the thrusters. Keith flew behind, just lagging ever so slightly. He was keeping up though and as soon as the first laser tried to fire at him Lance put the blue lion into a hyper jump.

He thanked Pidge silently for the modification. He made a mental note to actually say that to her if he ever got to see her again.

 Through his clouded vision he could make out the edges of another horizon and thought to himself that if they didn't land now, their lions would not function, leaving them stranded in space. Landing would also give them a hiding place. The planet before them didn't look too terribly uninviting and he slowed down to meet the red lion at its side.

"We need to land here!" He spoke even though it already looked like Red had the same idea. The only issue was that she seemed to have a real problem navigating by herself. Lance resigned to make Blue fly up to her and grab her torso in her mouth. If Keith had any opposition to this he didn't show it. There was absolutely no resistance.

Lance began to pick up speed as they entered the planet's very thin atmosphere and it wasn't long before they could actually see the land.The sandy terrain took Lance back to the time when he and Keith had raced each other that time Allura had put their helmet blinders on and they had proceeded to crash headfirst into the ground. He did not want a repeat of that time.

So, when they neared the ground they slowed way down and collapsed against the sand. Lance took a moment to regain his senses and check if Blue was okay. She seemed to be fine all except the sabotaged communicator. Still, he tried it once more.

"Hello?? Anybody? Allura! Shiro! Hunk! We're alive! Hello? Coran? Pidge?!"

He was preoccupied with it until his eyes caught movement outside the window. Down on the ground was Keith, hobbling to the side of the lion desperately banging on the metal plated controls. Lance opened the hatch and ran out to meet him to prevent him from doing any collateral damage. By the time he got to him, he was freaking out.

"Keith! Hey relax, man okay?!"

Lance had his hands up like he was trying to tend to a wild animal. Failing to downplay this analogy, Keith had his teeth bared and was clawing at the metal plate, balancing on his hind legs. Lance noticed how they were shaking uncontrollably but he didn't move to help until Keith collapsed against the sand in a pathetic heap. Lance was at his side in an instant but Keith flinched and backed up against the lion.

"Get away from me!" he spat. This time, tears were pooling in his eyes and his teeth were clenched together. Lance's eyes fell upon his suspiciously bent leg. Despite the previous warning, he bent down to touch it.  Keith sat defensively, but the only movement from him came from his chest and when Lance's fingers came in contact with the knotty, purple flesh, he groaned in pain and his leg twitched.

"You're hurt," Lance observed plainly. "You really need a healing pod."

"Yeah, well we aren't exactly known for our gentle and aiding nature. You should know that by now."

 Keith attempted to stand up again and Lance held his hands out in caution.

"We? Keith...don't say that. You're not one of them."

Once he had himself braced against the lion again, Keith forced a laugh.

"Even if I believed that, it wouldn't matter. Shiro is going to take one look at me and kick me to the curb. I'll be lucky if I get out alive."

Lance's eyes widened. "You think he'd want to  _kill you?"_

 

 

Keith closed his eyes. "Don't pretend like that's not a possibility. I wouldn't expect you to understand. I've only been harboring this my whole life, knowing that my own brother wouldn't even blink before trying to rid us of it."

With that, Keith pounced on top of the red lion to get to work on its inner workings leaving Lance to stare at his reflection on the lion's side. He looked a mess. You could barely tell the armor was supposed to be white, caked in dirt, mud and blood. His legs and chest were scathed with cuts and dents;  One side plate over his rib cage was missing and the fabric lay worn and tattered. He told himself hopefully Allura would know how to fix it if they ever got to her.

It hit him hard. Getting away from the Galra didn't guarantee anything. They had been prisoners and now they were stranded. He didn't know what they had done to the communicators and he sure as hell didn't know how to fix it. Keith was already digging into the mainframe and pulling apart tangled wires. Even though he seemed to know what he was doing, his movements were sloppy and he fumbled with them as he worked.

Lance was even less help. He wasn't a mechanic; he had only ever trained to be a pilot. That was the one part of the Lions that was working. Blue tried to send him her sympathies but it was twinged with a bit of helplessness and he was already feeling enough of that.

 Keith let out an exasperated gnarl and threw the tool he was working with onto the sand.

"Ugh! If only Hunk were here!"

Lance had thought the same thing but not alone because he was the only proficient engineer among them. If it turned out he couldn't fix the Lions he'd freak out, but then Lance would have something to do. Someone to comfort. Keith didn't want his pity. He didn't  even want to love him anymore. As far as he was concerned, they weren't even friends.

 His real friend was God knows where and Lance knew for a fact that Hunk was equally as worried as he was for him. He always showed that he cared way more than Keith; all of them did. Maybe that's why he chose him. He was a mystery to unravel. The unraveling had come to an end.

"You're right" Lance confessed, a lump forming in his throat. "We should have just stayed at the prison. Now I'm going to die on this desert and you're never going to see how much they all love you . How much Allura cares about you."

 At this comment, Keith crawled out of the lion and sat down in the sand. Lance had his knees hugged to his chest.

"What did Allura say about me?" He asked, tentatively. He was aware that he and the princess were the only ones that had a personal relationship with each other. He supposed that it wouldn't be far-fetched considering that Allura was directly attached to the lions. Still this was news to him. I mean, Lance and Allura? C'mon.

 Lance actually sniffled and Keith grimaced, body aching to comfort him, but he forced himself to be still. He wouldn't allow himself to become reattached. Still, this intrigued him.

"She said she could tell my heart wasn't in it," Lance spoke around a shaky breath. "That despite us being a team, the blue lion felt lonely to her. And she was so confused and I told her it was my family. And she said, 'we're your family too.' So I said, 'it doesn't feeel like it all the time' and she knew immediately I was talking about you."

Keith did feel guilty, but this was behind them. He knew where this was going.

"So she said you had to put Voltron before me," Keith determined. "I get it."

But Lance shook his head.

"She said that if I need you to lean on, then I could. Because the bond between lion's is strongest when the bond between paladins is."

Keith sat up straighter and growled. "You liar. You're just saying this to manipulate me."

Suddenly, Lance stood up and Keith was struck by the look on his face.

"Did you ever stop to think that maybe it was Allura trying to manipulate us? The only difference being that you pushed me away while I had to relentlessly pine after you even after we started dating. It was the only way to keep the balance of Voltron's aura. That was our secret. While you had this ridiculous notion that we'd push you away after finding this out, I was busy trying to keep the team together."

Keith wanted to punch Lance in the face out of mere convenience. Even though he and the princess could basically tap into each others minds, he had completely missed it. He couldn't tell who he hated more in this exact moment: Allura, Lance or himself. But he realized that he wasn't actually angry. Things seemed to make more sense now and that's all he ever wanted. And Lance had brought it to him.

He looked back up into the blue boy's eyes and found that he was overflowing with tears, some of hurt but most with a clarity that he had longed for so badly. He opened his mouth to say something but Lance gasped over his tears.

"You say you want to leave and that's fine. I care about Voltron, but I care about you more. Even despite this Galra crap, or Altean crap, I'll never stop loving you. Even if that means you stopped in return."

And in that moment, Keith knew that what he felt was true. He was so caught up in his background that he didn't realize what was actually important to him. Rather than focusing on his past, he now wanted to pursue his future.

He would have grabbed Lance's hand faster had it not been for the excruciating pain he was in. Still, Lance jumped from the new movement. His hand felt warm and right on his palm, a feeling he would have missed dearly had he went back to the Galra. 

"I never stopped loving you. I don't want to" he whispered.

If it was possible for a human to express all the emotions at once, Keith had just witnessed it. Lance was hysterical, crying and laughing and holding Keith gingerly like a doll all at once. The real grip was on his hands. He didn't want to let go. Keith didn't want him to.

He wanted to apologize. He wanted to kiss Lance and promise sweet days to him all over again. He wanted to ask him to be his forever until they died old on Earth together after they beat Zarcon. He may have been part Galra, but he felt full Altean.

He couldn't do either of these things because their rejoicing was cut short by the crackling of an intercom.

"Hello? Identify yourselves! This is a restricted line used only by the Voltron force."

Never had Keith thought Allura's voice would sound so sweet. As Lance scrambled to answer it, he collapsed against the lion, holding his wounded leg against his chest protectively. 

They were finally going home.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHO'S EXCITED FOR SEASON 2 AHHH


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So season 2 happened and it was AWESOME but it destroyed the Altean Keith theory. That's fine but for the sake of coherence I haven't changed anything here. Hope you enjoy nonetheless.

Keith tried to scramble to his lion, eager to answer the call, but he only made it a few feet before collapsing in the sand. When Lance heard the thunk behind him he stopped the trek up his lion.

"Keith! What's wrong?"

The boy lifted his head up, shaking with determination and spitting out sand.

"It hurts. Don't worry about me! Answer the princess."

Lance haulted a bit before reminding himself that the longer they stayed out alone the more time they waited for help. So he just gave Keith some kind of thumbs up before sliding inside Blue and reaching the communicator right as Allura made another transmission.

"Hello? I-I don't appreciate this mockery," she said harshly but even she didn't sound so sure of herself. Lance smashed his palm on the translator.

"No, Allura! It's us! It's Lance! We really have the blue and red lion!"

"You're...alive?" She sounded like she was trying hard to mask her surprise but was failing hopelessly. Lance heard what sounded like a shout and stomping arround the mic. "Is Keith with you?"

Lance swallowed dryly and nodded, even though she wasn't there to see him. "Yes. Yeah, he's alive. We're gonna need one hell of a family meeting. But he made a transformation or something...it's kind of hard to explain..." 

"I'm well aware, Lance. Keith and I have a connection that can only be severed if his Galran side overtakes his Altean side. At first we thought he had died but I am very much happier with this alternative."

"Oh." Lance said, sucking his teeth."I totally knew that. But this wasn't his fault! The Galra did something to him! He's hurt, badly, and I...I don't think he'll make it unless he gets into a healing pod."

 Allura sucked in her breath sharply but maintained a steady voice. "It's alright. Head toward the underbrush near the caves of Arus. That's where everyone is hiding out."

Another grunt and an explosion sounded on the other end. Lance stiffened. "Please tell me that was a Hunk disaster in the kitchen." But before Allura could answer, the connection cut off and he was left alone. Almost as soon as he started to panic, a popping noise sounded and a new voice yelled through.

"Oh my god, Lance! You're alive! I can't believe it! Can yo believe it? Oh no, I'm going to start crying again!"

Lance beamed. "Hunk! Good to hear from you too, buddy. What's going on?"

His voice suddenly turned serious, but it was clear that Hunk was still shaken up about it. "You need to get here fast, man. The Galra showed up; they're everywhere! They're trying to destroy Arus!"

That wasn't good, especially since he had no idea where he was relative to Arus.

"Listen, Hunk. I'd love to help, but I have no idea where we are." There was a shifting of tHe mic and another explosion nearly compromised the connection.

"That's where I come in," Pidge said. She sounded like she was concentrating on something. "Allura is already connected to the lions so we know where you are. But you don't know how to get here. Can your lions move?" 

"Mine's fine but Keith's isn't looking too good. Is there anyway we can get to the castle without risking being shot out of the sky?" Lance reasoned with a grimace.

Shiro butted in with a sturdy voice. "It looks like you guys are going to have to just take your chances. Just get low to the ground as fast as you possibly can and run for the caves. After we get all the Arusians to safety, we can band together and form Voltron."  

"Great. Thanks, Shiro."  Sounded easy enough. He went through all the systems he knew to divert all the energy into a homing beacon. Once it was working, he waiting for Pidge to get the distances and send the coordinates of Arus. In almost no time, he had found his map to home.

It began easy enough. Lance got Blue to coax Red into the air once Keith was boarded back up inside her. With minor errors, Keith was able to pilot her. Lance flew by Red's side just in case. All went according to plan until they actually entered the atmosphere and could see the enemy intruders. The Galra fleet seemed to take immediate notice to the new arrivals, which meant they could no longer make safe passage without conflict. Lance made Blue beeline to the front of Red, defending her from the oncoming ships. Blue's  claws extend outward and she opened her mouth and the ice ray beamed out, knocking several of them out of the park. 

"Say hello to my little friend!" Lance cackled. Their waves seemed to grow smaller and it was only a matter of time before they retreated. In a bold move of ignorance, he flew at them and pounced, tearing them apart with his claws.

"Don't you ever touch my boyfriend again," he demanded as he took one ship in his jaws and tossed it aside, letting it explode against the sand by the water. 

Which reminded him.

 Lance turned in horror when he remembered Keith, who was hovering a few yards away out in the open. The red lion made a move for the underbrush but without any coverage, could no longer do so effectively. In one single stroke, two Galra ships fired with everything they had at the exposed paladin. The red lion spazzed like it had in the atmosphere of Cardot, burst into flames and spiraled downward toward the beach.

"KEITH!"

 He couldn't meet him in time before he hit the ground. He actually couldn't meet him at all because at that moment the Galra decided to corner him in the air. Lance may have been the blue paladin but in that point of time, he was seeing clear red. This gave him enough adrenaline to attack them both head on, not even thinking for a bit. He was one with the blue lion.

"Arrrrrrrrrraaaaaaauuuughhh!" In all the time it had taken him to grab a ship, hurl it at the other one, and let it explode, Red barely so much as twitched. To make matters worse, there were more soldiers on the ground flanking Red than in the air trying to take down Blue. Lance tried everything to divert their attention, but it was no use.

"Let's see how you like me on the ground!" he shrieked.

 He parked the lion in the middle of the woods and ran out the hatch, hoisting his beyard onto his shoulder. Blasts exploded from his gun as he knocked down soldier after soldier but they still came evermore. Lance didn't care. All he wanted was to get to Keith. He could leave the blue lion alone just for a while; it would be protected by it's particle barrier. None of the soldiers would have the composure to pull it down.

 By now, Lance had lost all of his own composure. He burst through the leaves and twigs, feet clapping hard on the ground as he ran for Keith's life. His breath scraped against the air and his body ached for a rest from the past absolute crap hectic days. Finding Keith battered and barely human only to lose him in a home battle would negate all the effort he put into finding him, convincing him to go back, and getting their lions to work just long enough to get them back to Arus. He had to save him and bring him to Allura. He had to succeed.

But all for what?

 Once they destroyed the invading fleet and got Keith into a pod, things would go back to the way they were. Lance would lose him to the times the princess and he spent perfecting his Altean abilities, submerging his Galra side once again. Along with the reawoken feelings for Lance. It was possible he would lose him only in a different way.

It was all for nothing.

 The red lion had just come in to view when Lance felt his face collide with a barrel and he fell to the ground, a metallic tasting river already pouring over his lips. He whipped his gun out with his eyes screwed shut and aimed at upwards shooting out against his offender. They were quick and they were evasive. When Lance stop seeing stars behind his eyelids he opened them and was met face-to-face with a Galra soldier. He had his beyard pointed under his chin and the soldiers gun targeted the single area of missing armor on Lance's rib cage. They both acknowledge each other, The only sound being their heaving breaths from running and their raging heartbeats. Poised to kill, Lance's eyes caught movement just beyond the trees.

 The red lion's jaw was open slack and a very mangled Keith was crawling out of the lion with blood trickling down the side of his face. He bellowed in pain and reached out to Lance in a seemingly innocent manner. They locked eyes intensely.

"You'll be okay," Lance breathed. And then Keith let a desperate scream rip through the silent air. It all happened at once.

"LANCE, WATCH OUT!"

Lance had relied on his impulses in the past way too much. So much so that often it got him into trouble whether it was at the Garrison or training with Voltron.  Or even when he was just a child living on Varadero beach with his family. As the Galran shoved the bayonet of his gun between Lance's exposed ribs he got to re-account all these instances as they filtered through his mind, melding their way into his reality. He was so stunned in pain that he barely registered his beyard going off, echoing in the back of his mind. The shot penetrated the monster and Lance fell backwards, hitting the dirt with a thud and a hand hovering over his wound. He was shaking and felt cold and suddenly very, very alone.

And then Keith was there.

Sweet, angelic Keith who he had loved and fought with for four long years. Bitter, biting Keith who he had kissed and vented to whenever he needed the extra love. Every single version of him sat there, teeth clenched in agony and eyes wide with fear and horror as blood spilt and spouted through his broken ribs and his breath painfully ragged.

Yes the pain finally hit.

 Lance knew he had screamed but he felt so numb from shock that all he truly felt was Keith's arms wrapped around him.

"Lance...nononono Lance. No, you're okay, you're okay..." he babbled, face wet with tears. Lance's face felt wet too. He brought a shaking hand to his cheek and Keith grabbed it, squeezing comfortingly.

"What...what's happening? What is this?" he gasped, the wet on his cheeks suddenly blooming into the most ridiculous thing. He had to know.

Keith drew in a ragged breath. "It's just the rain, Lance. You're going to be okay." Now that that was cleared up, Lance felt his attention go to Keith's warm embrace.

"I didn't know it could rain on Arus," he sighed, face slacking in content. He could barely remember the last time Keith had held him this close.

He could die like this.

Keith swallowed his own pain and tried to lift himself up but he was far too weak and his legs wobbled, letting him collapse back on top of his friend. Lance whined in pain and a few tears trickled down his face but he looked back at Keith, focusing all his energy into a small smile.

"Yeah, and you're gonna see it rain plenty more times" Keith grunted, still determined to get them out of there. He could barely move an inch. Stars danced in his vision and his stomach churned with the effort. Lance's hand combing through his fur stopped him.

"You're so stubborn, you know that?" He said before a dry cough. "Just let us have this. Moving's jus' gonna make it worse."

 Keith tried to pull himself together. His Altean Powers allowed him to adapt to change and the advanced stages would let him heal broken bones, ripped skin and raw flesh. He could shed himself of his mutated appendages and walk out a stronger Altean. If only he were full Altean and if only he had fully mastered his abilities.

 He needed Lance to help him. He needed him to give him the strength that had helped him in the trials before. It has always worked.

" _You're going to have to stop relying on him to bring you strength. You know that Keith,"_ Allura had said. He never wanted to consider death a factor.

Lance's eyes were fluttering closed and Keith was desperately shaking him awake.

"No, Lance! I can't lose you! What happens after I lose you!?"

 Lance still smiled, but it was sad now and there was fear evident behind his eyes. But his gaze began to unfocus and he stared up at the sky, blinking weakly against the raindrops.

"The rainbow.." he whispered and let his head loll back.

"Wha...?" Keith let his gaze flit upward for just a moment and sure enough, there was a fat ,solid rainbow coloring the sky. As if it promised some kind of solace. He looked back at Lance for some explanation, but found that his eyes were closed.

"...Lance?" A small voice said. As the blue paladin heaved one last breath, his grip on Keith's paw relaxed and his face slackened further.

"The rainbow," he ghosted. "That's where you'll find me."

 Keith was jealous of the stillness; The haulting of the blood trailing down his side, the cut-off of his breathing and the utter peacefulness of his face. If he could turn back time he would have saved Lance's time spent on coming for him. If he could only go back he could trade his own life for his.

"No..." he gaped. "Lance. We have to go find the others. Wake up," he pleaded and then demanded, "wake up!"

 His body twitched one last time and Keith clung to him, shoulders heaving and a wail erupting from his throat. He wasn't waking up. He wasn't coming back. And Keith was going to live without him.

"No!" He sobbed, clawing at the dirt whilst cradling Lance's lifeless body to his chest. "Why!?"

Crying seeped all his energy from him and he collapsed on the corpse, waiting for someone to come for him. They'd shoot him and it would all be over. No more dealing with being Galran or Altean. He'd just be one among the stars with Lance forever. That's all he ever wanted.

 He wasn't sure how much time had passed.  Soon enough, there was someone at his side gently trying to maneuver Keith onto his back. Another set of hands found themselves onto Lance's body, the same despair and denial in them as had been in Keith. His breaths hitched as he hiccuped, next to destroyed after losing his best friend once again and for real this time. Keith couldn't help but blame himself as he reached out for the yellow paladin. 

"H-Hunk," he tried. "I'm s-so...s-so sorry."

 A gentle embrace pulled him forward and Keith found his face buried in Shiro's chest, once more safe in his presence. His body had exerted all of his energy so he couldn't return the favor but he was conscious enough to notice how still Shiro was holding him, placid hands planed across the only fabric around his lower back. He could barely touch Keith like this in his Galra form and he knew that it would take some time for them to bond again so he would get used to it.

 He protested when Shiro lifted him off the ground, but not for the reason of pain.

"Just leave me," he begged, deliriously. "Just let me die."

Shiro tried to shush him as they made their trek back to the castle. Keith couldn't help the state of shock he was in, resisting helplessly.  It took both the efforts of Shiro and Allura to get him inside the castle and coax him into a healing pod.

Keith's last thought before succcumbing to the cooling sensation was hope that the castle would kill him too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> something came up so I'm going to post the last chapter later today. Sorry :( I typed this super fast so if there are any errors just let me know thanks.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 6 months later...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHAT A TRIP. Not to be dramatic but this was a real learning experience for me. I probably will never write a fic this long for a while but many short fics are coming so stay tuned. I love you all TONS. Thanks for the love<3

"Let's try again," Allura coaxed.

Keith took a deep relaxed breath, letting his eyes fall closed as he focused on the weight of the petals resting in his palms, dried and gray. He tried relentlessly to to fuel the juices that would pump life into them but he couldn't quite get it. At least not on his own.

He groaned when he failed once more and glared at Allura.

"This is a waste of time, can't I just ask him for help?" He said. Allura sighed but she gave him a half smile and rolled her shoulders back.

"Patience, young paladin. But I suppose." He felt her contentment as he turned his attention to the water.

"Lance, do you mind helping me out?"

The castle sat on a cliff on the edge of the water which looked out at the open ocean of Arus. Because of it's vulnerability, the Arusians didn't like to venture out so far, but that meant this was one of the most vacant and private areas of the planet. So Allura and Keith decided it was nice to train there.

It was also where Keith could draw the most positive energy.

Lance was buried on an island in the middle of the water; one which hardly anyone ever visited. In a way, the blue lion still held ties to his spirit, so whenever they were near, they felt like Lance was with them. It was and it served to be very helpful in Keith's training. Lance often gave him some meaningful encouragement.

With the somewhat comforting feeling of being watched, he exhaled and moved his fingers in waves. The glow of a connection pulsed to life and the petals swarmed in a formation, stitching themselves together with ease. When the final, healed product layed itself in his hand, he breathed a sigh in relief.

"I did it." Allura grasped his forearm with her own. She smirked at him fondly.

"I am proud. You have always been one of us, Keith. Never forget that."

It had taken him some time to heal and even so, he hadn't really all the way. Keith's Altean side had to combat his mutated Galran cells from turning him into a robeast, and as a result, his skin remained a tinted purplish shade. The pod had been able to heal his broken bones and bruised muscles and removed most of the fur. All that remained was the lavender sideburns on the sides of his face. His ears were a bit oddly shaped as well but Keith wasn't in any physical pain. Allura thought that with some time, he'd be able to heal himself completely. 

Truth was though, Keith didn't know who he was before this change. He truly didn't want it to go away.

The princess and he sat together for a while admiring the water when Shiro, Pidge and Hunk bounded down the slope to find them. Coran appeared moments later, apologizing profusely for their interruptions.

"I tried to stop them, princess. Truly, I did." Allura seemed hardly bothered. In fact, she stood up to stand by Shiro and kissed his cheek.

"It is alright, Coran. Keith is continuing to progress. By the the looks of it, it is all the same for you." 

Shiro smiled. "The blue lion is ready for you. I think you might actually get to pilot thanks to those two." Hunk and Pidge waved eagerly from Keith's side. Allura set a hand on Shiro's shoulder.

"Here's hoping. I have some pretty big shoes to fill."

With that, the princess, Shiro, and Coran left Keith, Pidge and Hunk sitting by the waterside. For a while they were just quiet, watching over Lance's resting place and the colorful sky of reds, blues, and yellows. If anyone knew the Garrison kids well, then they knew bouts of quietness never lasted long.

"Hey, Keith," Hunk said suddenly. "What was Lance like?"

 Keith was struck with confusion and Pidge raise an eyebrow at him. They both turned to face their friend.

"You know what he was like," Pidge exclaimed. "He was your best friend!" Hunk raised his hands up in defense.

"Hey I know, I know. I just wanted to hear Keith talk about him," he said, sultry-like.

Keith rolled his eyes, but he leaned back on his palms as he recounted his feelings for the boy he learned to love.

"Well, I never thought I could be friends with someone so painfully, ear-gratingly annoying who had an equal, if not more, disapproval for me as I had for him," he confessed.

 The other two stiffened at this, but Keith waved them off.

"But when we became flight partners, I learned that because of his adversity we were perfect partners. We reflected each other and then I realized that every thing I hated about you...I actually really loved." 

 His cheeks tinted at his openness among his peers, but neither Hunk nor Pidge judged him. In fact, they fell silent again as they resumed their quiet admiration of the scenery before them.

 Keith shifted his position when his hand hit something smooth in the sand. Bringing it forward, he discovered a smooth rock the size of his palm. He held it up as if to show it to Lance.

"Heh. Nice," he said and was about to stow it away in his pocket when a splash rippled the middle of the water. Keith whipped his head up and traced it to Hunk who had his hand reeled back ready to toss out a rock into the bay.

"What are you doing?" He asked when he skipped the rock and it finally bounced twice before sinking.

"Hey, Lance would have liked it. Were you not gonna skip that one? I thought you were, I'm sorry!"

 He opened his mouth for a retort, but found some truth in that. Hunk did know Lance better than him, but it would be like Lance to find this funny.

"Okay. The one with the longest stream of skips wins."

 It was just them for a while, skipping rocks with friendly competition and he had a vision of them piloting together at the Garrison. Without Voltron, they certainly wouldn't have bonded as well as they had now. Certainly not without Lance. It never would have worked. He wondered what he had done right to deserve these two by his side. He wondered why Lance had to take the fall for him to be happy.

 After a while Hunk and Pidge decided to leave Keith alone for a bit. And when they returned to the castle soon because of the dark they said goodbye and Keith got on his knees to touch the sand. When he was certain they were gone, he splayed his hands out in the dirt and performed the ceremony that Allura had done with the Balmera. This one was smaller though as it was only for the area surrounding the island.

 The flowers replenished themselves and the grass thrived, thick as well as luscious. A cool breeze blew in from afar and Keith meditated as the area made it self presentable. Something to repay Lance for helping him thrive in his power. He'd return every day to do it once more.

"Goodnight, Lance," he whispered, kissing his hand and touching the ground. "Thank you."

Returning to the Castle, he left Lance resting peacefully under the rainbow's defensive yet decorative protection.


End file.
